LWDC Chapter 133

## Chapter 133: A Two-Million-Dollar Lover

Chapter 133: A Two-Million-Dollar Lover

Chapter 133: A Two-Million-Dollar Lover

At dinner, when the four met, Yu Zhou immediately noticed that the atmosphere between Ning Fei and Duan Yunhong was vastly different from the last time.

If last time there was a natural understanding and a hint of intimacy, this time there was politeness with distance. They sat side by side, not to the point of completely ignoring each other, but there was an air of “not a word more than necessary.”

Ning Fei was usually smooth and sophisticated. If the atmosphere around him was stiflingly silent, it was probably intentional.

Yue Fengping also noticed the odd situation and initially felt “awkward on their behalf.” Fortunately, Yu Zhou kept talking to him, and Ning Fei responded to everything Yu Zhou said. Once the food arrived and they gradually ate and chatted, the atmosphere finally eased up a bit.

Ning Fei remained somewhat lazy, only actively initiating or joining conversations about profit-sharing. At other times, he mostly kept silent. However, when Yu Zhou used the excuse of New Year’s goods to stuff things into his hands, Ning Fei would immediately pass some of it on to Duan Yunhong. Of course, he said it nicely, saying he hadn’t prepared any New Year’s gifts and was just borrowing flowers to offer to Buddha.

“I don’t…” Before he could finish, Duan Yunhong found two bags of New Year’s goods thrust into his hands. And Ning Fei turned back to talk to Yu Zhou after giving them, leaving Duan Yunhong with only the back of his head, clearly rejecting Duan Yunhong’s refusal.

*Sigh, it would look awkward to keep pushing them back and forth.*

Thinking this, Duan Yunhong could only put them aside and accept them. Yu Zhou, who was being re-gifted, didn’t mind. He could tell that Ning Fei was passing on things he didn’t like as much. Anyway, Yu Zhou had brought them with the thought of “what Yue Fengping’s comrade has, my friend must also have.” As for what Ning Fei did with them afterward, Yu Zhou didn’t care.

“…Speaking of which, I forgot to confirm in advance. Director Duan’s promise here tonight also applies when we return to Huichuan, right?”

Yu Zhou interspersed casual conversation with business talk very naturally, immediately pulling the topic back to the main point: “Or, could Director Duan give the people in Huichuan a call these next few days to prepare the ground?”

This consistent style of urging was truly worthy of the efficient master and apprentice.

Ning Fei also turned to stare at Duan Yunhong. Duan Yunhong suspected that if he said “let’s talk about it after the holiday” at this moment, Ning Fei would flip the table.

So Duan Yunhong replied, “Actually, this preparation has already been done by my superior, who asked for my opinion. I can express my opinion to him when I make my New Year’s call these next few days.”

“But what we’re discussing now isn’t just the sharing of a single achievement, but also Huichuan joining the cross-regional research and development framework agreement. Are you sure you can persuade those leaders in Huichuan about this?” Yu Zhou confirmed, “After the New Year, we’ll be talking directly with Jinghui. Don’t go back on your word then.”

“Before I leave, I can first sign a letter of intent with Tianyue’s research center in the name of the research institute,” Duan Yunhong said. “Even if Huichuan ultimately breaks down the three-party talks, we can still share through the cooperation between the Huichuan Research Institute and the Tianyue Research Center.”

“Good, it’s settled then.” Yu Zhou glanced at Ning Fei, “Then, I’ll trouble Ning Fei to draft a letter of intent these next few days.”

Ning Fei nodded: “I’ll give it to you tomorrow.”

Yu Zhou: “…” Pushing it onto me, huh?

“I still trust you. If you and Director Duan can confirm it, just put it through the system for approval.” Yu Zhou thought to himself that he had already done his best by accompanying them for dinner and talking business, and didn’t want to keep working overtime. “Gentlemen, is there any problem?”

Ning Fei and Duan Yunhong exchanged glances. Duan Yunhong gave a “as you wish” look, and Ning Fei turned back to say, “No problem, I’ll remind you when it’s on the system.”

Yu Zhou: “…Okay.”

*

They ate most of the meal in a delicate atmosphere. Yu Zhou looked at the situation and turned to Ning Fei: “Did you bring cigarettes? Come outside and have one with me.”

This wasn’t a request for advice, but rather an imperative sentence. Ning Fei really hadn’t brought any, and turned to look at Duan Yunhong: “Director Duan, can I borrow a cigarette and a lighter?”

Duan Yunhong glanced at him silently, reached into his pocket as if to search, but actually pulled out a new pack of cigarettes and a lighter from his interdimensional space and gave them to him.

“Thanks.” Ning Fei supported himself on Duan Yunhong’s shoulder to get up and patted it. “I’ll be right back.”

Duan Yunhong had barely gotten a good look from him in two days. Suddenly being treated so intimately actually gave him a feeling of being flattered. After Ning Fei followed Yu Zhou out of the private room, Duan Yunhong suddenly snapped back to reality.

*Tsk, don’t tell me I’m being PUA’d…*

On the other side, Ning Fei and Yu Zhou went to a sheltered spot outside the restaurant, used their abilities to control the wind around them, and then actually lit the cigarettes.

“Alright, tell me, what’s going on with you?”

Yu Zhou stood by the wall, slowly exhaling smoke: “What shenanigans are you and Duan Yunhong up to? You’re like a bickering couple in a cooling-off period before a divorce, forced to return to the wife’s parents’ home for the New Year. Even eating a meal is uncomfortable. If I had known, I would have preferred to sit in the office tomorrow morning to talk, saving myself from indigestion.”

“You can position yourself as the ‘mother’ if you want, but don’t go crazy and recognize me as your ‘daughter.'” Ning Fei also held a cigarette, lowering his eyes and scoffing, “There’s no breakup or divorce nonsense. He gave me 2 million in luck, and I have to act as his lover in this world.”

“…Huh?” Yu Zhou involuntarily moved the cigarette he was about to put in his mouth away. “What? 2 million? Act as a lover?”

“Yeah, I’ve already received 1 million, and the rest will be given when the mark is destroyed.” Ning Fei exhaled another puff of smoke, his expression calm. “Just think of it as a half-kept gig. Anyway, I can’t easily find another lover in this world. If I do, it’s best to do it behind his back.”

“No, I don’t understand, what exactly are you guys playing at?” Yu Zhou frowned slightly. “Weren’t you already lovers? How is he throwing more and more luck at you?”

“Lovers? Not really, at most we’re just pleasure partners with good physical chemistry.” Ning Fei’s tone was light. “We meet when we have time and are in the mood, otherwise it’s fine. Who he sleeps with and where he finds pleasure is irrelevant.”

“But now, he cares, doesn’t he?” Yu Zhou said, “He came to find you just to use luck to tie you down first? Isn’t this a tactic of feigned retreat?”

“2 million to ‘buy’ a world, that was my suggestion.” Ning Fei replied. “He wanted to talk to me seriously, but I didn’t want to. Either 2 million, or get lost.”

“…You’re scared, aren’t you?”

“Afraid of what? Am I afraid of luck pirates?”

“Afraid of yourself actually being dragged into his vortex.” Yu Zhou’s tone wasn’t loud, but his words were firm. “Did he really shake you? It seems you left out a lot of details about the stories of the previous worlds.”

Ning Fei: “It’s not that bad, just taking precautions.”

Yu Zhou: “That was too quick of an answer, there’s a suspicion of lying.”

Ning Fei: “…”

“Ning Xiaofei, have you forgotten that I’ve witnessed how you used this kind of tactic before?” Yu Zhou lightly swayed the hand holding his cigarette. “Predicting that bigger trouble is coming, so you proactively accept a smaller trouble. For example, if someone wants to take you to a party where you might be played to death, you’ll proactively fall from the second floor and break your leg. If that old man wants you to entertain the disgusting Duke and his son, you’d rather throw an olive branch to someone else first…”

“Constantly reminiscing about old things is a sign of aging.” Ning Fei interrupted him. “I don’t deny the past, but I suggest you not use my affairs as amusing anecdotes to tell, especially not in front of me.”

“I’ve seen thousands of similar things, why would I specifically remember yours as a strange anecdote to tell everywhere?” Yu Zhou chuckled. “It’s just that I haven’t seen you use this tactic to escape for a long time. You’re planning to use the 2-million-dollar lover relationship to stabilize the other party, so that he won’t make dense moves again. And then during this period, make the other party annoyed, or numb his vigilance. As long as you can finally shatter the positioning mark, you’ll achieve your goal, right?”

“Since you guessed it, why ask.” Ning Fei said, “Being a lover is very simple for me.”

“Ha, now it’s not me reminiscing about the past.” Yu Zhou flicked his cigarette ash. “But I can see it, can’t the Duan guy see it? If he takes advantage of this period to entangle you even more, are you sure there won’t be a counter-effect?”

“I said, being a lover is very simple for me.” Ning Fei moved the cigarette from his mouth, his words laced with sarcasm, “If I can’t even handle this bit of entanglement, how could I have survived to this day?”

Yu Zhou thought about it and completely understood Ning Fei’s idea.

“You’re treating Duan Yunhong like those ‘lovers’. As long as you completely categorize him there in your heart, you don’t have to be afraid of being shaken by him.”

“…Think what you want.” Ning Fei threw the cigarette butt on the ground and stamped it out. “Anyway, I’ve explained things, but you don’t need to publicize it, just treat him normally. Just one thing, he can guess as he wants, but don’t leak our conversation.”

“I’m too free to leak it to him.” Yu Zhou still hadn’t mentioned his private conversation with Duan Yunhong to Ning Fei. Now that Ning Fei had this attitude, Yu Zhou would be even less likely to have any extra communication with Duan Yunhong in the future. No matter how Ning Fei wanted to treat Duan Yunhong, whether it was tricking him out of luck or tricking him emotionally, Yu Zhou would naturally stand on Ning Fei’s side.

“Anyway, I won’t say anything else, you’re skilled and don’t need my guidance.” Yu Zhou continued. “But I’ll definitely be there on the day you retrieve the mark. Don’t worry too much.”

“Mm.” Ning Fei hadn’t originally thought about this arrangement, but he felt that having a third person present might make it easier to stabilize the situation. And if anything unexpected happened, Yu Zhou was quite reliable. Therefore, Ning Fei didn’t think too much and directly agreed.

He didn’t even pay much attention to the fact that Yu Zhou had used a definite tone again to proactively plan the matter, leaving almost no room for discussion. But even if he noticed, it didn’t matter. Ning Fei had learned under Yu Zhou’s style of doing things before and was already used to it.

“Alright, let’s go back.” Yu Zhou also finished his cigarette, threw it away, crushed it, and then patted Ning Fei’s arm with the hand that hadn’t touched the cigarette. “Don’t be too annoyed, if you really can’t figure it out, come find me.”

“Nonsense, I already graduated, why are you still pretending to be a teacher here?” Ning Fei scoffed, responding by also patting him. The two returned to the restaurant one after the other.